River Clyde Photography: RMS Viper

Monday 27 October 2008

RMS Viper

The Viper was built at the Fairfield Shipbuilding & Engineering Co's yard in Govan in 1906 and was 315 feet in length. She had three steam turbines powering the triple screws, making her one of the company's fastest ships with a top speed of 22 knots. The steamer worked the Ardrossan-Belfast route from 1906 to 1914.

The ship served as a troop carrier in the English Channel during the First World War but returned to operation on her pre-war route in 1919. However the unrest in Ireland resulted in the decline in passenger traffic with Scotland and Viper was sold to the Isle of Man Steam Packet Co in 1920 and renamed Snaefell.

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River Clyde Photography

Over half of Scotland’s population lives within a short distance of the River Clyde, from its humble beginnings in South Lanarkshire where it is created by two streams the Patrail Water and the Daer Water, the two streams meet at Watermeetings where the River Clyde starts.

It’s not long before it reaches picturesque Lanark and its famous waterfalls. It eventually finds its way to Glasgow who’s citizens in the 18^th century narrowed and deepened and ultimately industrialised the river making it one of the most famous shipbuilding rivers in the world, Glasgow did indeed make the Clyde and of course the Clyde made Glasgow, at its peak the Clyde shipyards built a fifth of the worlds ships.

During the 2^nd world war Winston Churchill said that “Liverpool and Glasgow were the lungs in which the country breathed through”. Ship building along with heavy industry is all but dead on the Clyde, the majority of our industrial heritage was swept away in the 70s and 80s leaving few traces of the rivers famous past.

Leaving Glasgow, the Clyde broadens as you pass the towns of Dumbarton, Port Glasgow and Greenock, who all played a part in making the Clyde famous through shipbuilding.

At the Tail of the Bank the river broadens once more and becomes the firth with its many sea lochs coastal towns and villages.

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